The Week in Germany
Mar 12, 2010
Click here to view the Newsletter online
Dear TWIG Readers,
|
| Young soccer fans celebrate together in June 2008 at a Turkey versus Germany match during the European championships. |
| (© picture-alliance/dpa) |
Downtown Cologne at 1am on Saturday. Revelers are stumbling in and out of nightclubs. Ambient electronic music wafts through historic little cobblestoned streets. Everyone is blissfully buzzed on the local Kölsch brews or on a cornucopia of cocktails with names like Golden Eyes and Honeymoon Caipirinha.
And then my German boyfriend darts around the corner. He couldn't take it anymore. I was dumbfounded. Why did he have to leave so suddenly?
He just had to give in to his heart's desire. He just had to cave in to an intense craving. He just had to have a piping hot döner!
He would rejoin our group at the next bar a little later on, satisfied and well fortified against a hangover by a hearty döner kebab - a giant flat loaf sandwich stuffed with shredded meat (lamb), chopped veggies such as lettuce, tomato, onions and cole slaw, and usually doused in a zesty garlic-yogurt sauce.
Integration Through the Stomach
|
| The döner kebab is one of the most popular fast foods in Germany. |
| (© picture-alliance/ ZB ) |
The döner kebab is one of the most popular fast foods in Germany, and is often available at Turkish-style eateries in cities across the country well into the wee hours of the morning.
"They have even set a record. Last year, more kebabs were sold than hamburgers," actor Adnan Maral, who presents Turkish and Bavarian cuisine on the regional TV station Bayerischer Rundfunk, said in a recent interview published by the Goethe-Institut and at Germany.info.
According to gourmets like Maral, the way to integration is through the stomach.
Majority Minority
This certainly could be the case in Germany, which is home to approximately 2.5 million people of Turkish origin, more than 700,000 of whom are German nationals.
Germany has a total population of 82 million. According to figures released in March 2009, Germany is home to around 6.7 million foreign nationals, a quarter of whom are Turkish.
|
| Cars line Berlin's Kurfürstendamm avenue in the 1950's. |
| (© picture-alliance / Helga Lade Fotoagentur GmbH) |
Wirtschaftswunder
German-Turkish relations date back centuries to the Ottoman Empire. They warmed up considerably in the 19th century. Turkish immigration to Germany was first promoted on a massive scale in 1961, when labor shortages in postwar Germany prompted the western German government to officially invite workers to the country to fill in the gaps, particularly to work in factories that helped fuel Germany's economic miracle, or Wirtschaftswunder.
The German authorities named these people Gastarbeiter (guest workers). Today Turks are Germany's largest minority and form most of Germany's Muslim minority. The new German Nationality Act adopted in 1999 has afforded many Turks in Germany new opportunities, including in obtaining German citizenship.
|
| Turkish families, Berlin park, May 1980 |
| (© dpa - Report) |
Myriad Turkish businesspeople and their families have worked hard and achieved economic success across Germany. As cited however in some German media reports and illustrated in recent government studies, there is still some room for improvement in achieving a more comprehensive kind of societal integration for many people or Turkish origin living in Germany.
Yet some headway has been made, and the German federal government as well as relevant non-governmental organizations have taken strides to provide a framework for dialogue and understanding.
Making Their Mark
Many Turks have contributed enormously to the German economy by, for instance, working in automobile factories and introducing Germans to the delights of Turkish cuisine.
Subsequent generations of Germans with Turkish roots have meanwhile made their mark in both the cultural and political realm.
|
| Fatih Akin |
| (© dpa - Bildfunk) |
They include the award-winning filmmaker director Fatih Akin, prominent author Feridun Zaimoglu, soccer star Mesut Özil, who will play for the German National Team at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and Cem Özdemir, co-leader (with Claudia Roth) of the German party Alliance '90/The Greens.
Delightful Destination
Turkey, moreover, has become increasingly appealing to Germans as an attractive tourist destination - more than 4 million Germans visited the country in 2008, and some 70,000 Germans now reside in Turkey, according to the Federal Foreign Office.
Istanbul, along with Essen (Germany) and Pécs (Hungary), is serving as a European Capital of Culture in 2010. And Turkey is the partner country at this year's ITB Berlin, the world's leading travel trade show, taking place from March 10-14.
|
| A textile restauration expert works on an item including some 340 individual pieces on red silk created between 1610 and 1612 in Prague for the Turkish Chamber exhibition in Dresden's Palace. |
| (© picture alliance / dpa) |
Deepening Dialogue
In Germany, Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoğlu opened a new exhibition on March 6 called Türckische Cammer (Turkish Chamber), a massive permanent exhibition of Ottoman art including more than 600 valuable objects on display in Dresden's Royal Palace (Residenzschloss), some dating back to the 16th-century collection of Elector August of Saxony.
The Türckische Cammer is the latest project of the Ernst Reuter Initiative for German-Turkish dialogue, launched in 2006 by former German and Turkish foreign ministers Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Abdullah Gül. It is named after Ernst Reuter, a Social Democrat and former governing mayor of Berlin who - like several other Germans, including German Jews - sought refuge from the Nazis in Turkey.
|
| (© picture-alliance/ dpa) |
Candidate Country
Germany is the biggest country in the Brussels-based European Union, currently comprised of 27 member states. Turkey wants to join the EU and is an official candidate country.
This has sparked debate about where Europe's borders lie, and how many countries should still be allowed to join the European Union. Arguments both for and against either full-blown Turkish EU membership - or, instead, a kind of special "privileged partnership" - abound.
Yet with so much existing interaction and cross-pollination already underway between Turks and Germans in economic, social, cultural and political spheres it is clear that in this sense, at least, Turkey already is part of Europe.
An amusing scene in Fatih Akin's gripping drama Gegen die Wand (Head On) in which two Turkish-Germans meet in an an Istanbul cab and dismiss each other's divergent dialects and hometowns - Hamburg and Munich - illustrates just how deep these cross-cultural connections run.
Karen Carstens
Webteam Germany.info
Co-Editor, The Week in Germany
Related Links:
The Way to Integration is Through the Stomach
The Ernst Reuter Initiative for Intercultural Dialogue and Understanding
In this issue
Top Stories
Current Affairs
Business, Technology and the Environment
Culture and Lifestyle
About "The Week in Germany"
Top Stories
Join Us on Facebook!
|
The German Embassy Washington has joined Facebook and we’re looking for you, our fans! As a fan of our page on Facebook, you’ll be able to connect with other fans, get the latest Embassy news and be the first to learn about Embassy events. You can also connect with German Consulates in the US who are on Facebook.
Iraqi Voters Demonstrate Courage to Choose Democracy
|
"The parliamentary elections are an expression of the courage and the unwavering belief of Iraqi voters in democracy in their country, and of their intention to take their future into their own hands,” the Federal Government spokesman said.
Olympic Biathlete Kati Wilhelm to End Career
|
Kati Wilhelm, the most successful Olympic women's biathlete, has announced that she will end her career at the end of this World Cup season.
Win a Trip to Visit a German University with Deutsche Welle
|
"Studi-DW", the Deutsche Welle program about studying in Germany, has announced a contest with the chance to win a trip to Germany to visit a University in Bonn or Berlin.
Current Affairs
Brazil and Germany – Strategic partners
|
Germany and Brazil are linked by a strategic partnership that covers far more than just economic issues. Foreign Minister Westerwelle stressed this fact on the fourth and final leg of his week-long trip to Latin America.
Uruguay and Germany – Linked by Shared Values
|
In Uruguay, the third leg of his South American tour, Foreign Minister Westerwelle emphasized his desire to see the two countries forge closer political, cultural and academic ties.
Strengthening Relations with Argentina
|
Germany and Argentina have agreed to intensify their cooperation. Following political talks in Buenos Aires, Foreign Minister Westerwelle said that Germany’s relations with Argentina were “in the strategic national interest.”
Business, Technology and the Environment
World's Largest Travel Fair Opens in Berlin
|
The annual ITB travel trade show is regarded as the world's biggest vacation catalogue: From Spain to Austria to Turkey to Tajikistan, 180 countries are showcased beneath Berlin's iconic Funkturm radio tower.
Tomato Juice Irresistable at 32,000 Feet
|
Only moderately popular at sea level, tomato juice is almost irresistibly delicious at an altitude of 32,000 feet, German researchers have confirmed.
Culture and Lifestyle
Louise – Queen of Hearts
|
Queen Louise of Prussia influenced her contemporaries and modern Germany probably more than any other woman. Germany is taking the 200th anniversary of her death as an opportunity to recognize the legacy of this remarkable woman.
Hirshhorn Exhibition Showcases Works of Artist Josef Albers
|
The exhibition, entitled "Josef Albers: Innovation and Inspiration," showcases not only Josef Albers’ legacy, through his own works as well as his teachings, but also the legacy of the Bauhaus, which was transmitted by Bauhaus alumni and teachers such as Josef Albers to locations across the globe.
Opening of the Exhibition "Türckische Cammer"
|
Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoğlu recently opened a new permanent exhibition in Dresden called Türckische Cammer (Turkish Chamber), an extensive collection of Ottoman-era objects now on display for the first time since the Second World War.
German Literary Prize Goes to Cultural Mediator
|
Second-time Adelbert-von-Chamisso-Prize winner Terezia Mora takes has been awarded 15,000 euros for her literary achievement and work as a translator and mediator between the Hungarian and German cultures.
Readings: Second Opinions Courtesy of Germany.info
|
This week, find out what Berliners think of their new airport, read glowing reviews of two Berlin musical institutions and take a look at the disturbing oeuvres of Otto Dix.
About "The Week in Germany"
A Publication of Germany.info and the German Information Center, USA
The articles referred to in this newsletter may contain links to websites that are maintained by third parties. These links are for readers' reference only, and the German Information Center is not responsible, nor shall it be held liable for, the content, services or products provided on these websites. The opinions and material contained herein do not necessarily represent the views or policies of the German government.